Sarkozy sparks party revolt as voters lose confidence in him

A deepening sense of gloom has fuelled speculation that France's president will not seek re-election in 2012

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and wife Carla Bruni in Washington DC last week. Photograph: Benjamin J. Myers/Reuters

France's president, Nicolas Sarkozy, is facing an unprecedented crisis as a poll showed that fewer than 28% of voters had confidence in his leadership, and deputies in his own UMP party launched a revolt against his tax policies, a pillar of his administration.

Only two serving French presidents have polled lower, François Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac, but both maintained the support of their party. The deepening sense of gloom enveloping Sarkozy has come amid speculation that – under pressure from his wife, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy – the president might not stand for re-election in 2012.

The latest poll, in Le Figaro, follows the recent humiliating defeat for the UMP in the second round of regional elections, the final test of Sarkozy's popularity before the 2012 elections, which saw his party trounced by the Socialists and holding only one of France's 26 regions.

Sarkozy's troubles have forced him to reshuffle his cabinet and to beg UMP deputies not to campaign against a tax commitment he introduced in his first few weeks in office guaranteeing that no one should pay more than 50% in direct taxes. Last week 13 MPs from the UMP sent a letter to Le Monde saying that they planned to draft a new law to abolish the tax rule.

The problems Sarkozy faces in his party were dramatically underlined by a furious intervention from a former finance minister, Alain Lambert, who launched a vitriolic public attack on the president on Friday, denouncing his policies of the past three years and warning that he was leading the French right "straight into the abyss".

Describing Sarkozy as being "in no position to deliver a majority" in 2012, he called on senior members of the party to "consider all eventualities".

Sarkozy's 50% tax regime has become the symbol of his difficulties. With France burdened with a budget deficit of 8%, even his supporters believe the country can no longer support his plans.